Whumptober 2019 - 24 - Secret Injury
by DinerGuy
Summary: 2018 reboot. Rick was fine. Sore and a little banged up, but fine. He needed to focus on Jules... However, his injuries had different ideas.


_A/N: __Standard disclaimers apply._

* * *

When she woke up that morning, Juliet Higgins did not expect to find herself covered in mud and stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Leave it up to Magnum to have her winding her way up the side of a mountain, searching for clues in muddy terrain, when she could've been doing something more productive, like taking care of responsibilities at her actual job. Or relaxing on the beach. Or literally doing anything else besides slapping away mosquitoes and hunting for a proverbial needle in a haystack.

Somehow, though, she found herself following behind Rick, thinking her day couldn't possibly get any worse. She'd somehow forgotten her phone in the car, the humid afternoon air was miserable, and she'd nearly twisted her ankle in an unseen hole about two miles back. Oh, and that was on top of the fact that it had briefly but heavily rained on them about fifteen minutes prior, _and _she could hear thunder from somewhere ahead now. She sighed; she was not looking forward to getting drenched yet again as the storm moved down the mountain.

Also? At this point, she was seriously starting to reconsider the number of favours she did for Thomas Magnum.

The man in question, of course, was currently in a helicopter with T.C., searching the other side of the mountain from the air. Quite conveniently, Higgins thought with a shake of her head. She still wasn't sure how she'd agreed to being on the ground, but she blamed the headache she'd woken up with that hadn't gone away despite the number of tablets she'd taken.

"See anything yet?" she called to Rick. She was going to suggest turning around if they didn't find any sign of their bad guys' hideout soon, but she never got quite that far.

Up ahead, she saw Rick take another step, and then the ground suddenly gave way. Higgins barely had time to process that the storms rolling through the area must have caused damage that allowed their weight to spark a minor landslide, and then she was swept off her feet.

Higgins tumbled head over heels, unable to determine which way was up as the avalanche of mud and debris carried her down the slope of the mountain. She tried to recall what she'd read about surviving a mudslide, but keeping her thoughts straight was incredibly difficult in the overwhelming rush of unidentified objects pelting her and the dark, sticky feeling of being submerged.

Coughing, Higgins felt mud coating the inside of her mouth and nose, but there was absolutely nothing she could do. The stuff was _everywhere, _and there was no escaping it.

In the next instant, she realised she couldn't see where she was going, and the fear she'd end up going right over the edge of a dropoff shot through her.

But then, almost as soon as it had started, everything stopped. The roar that had been in her ears cut off, and the mud around her slowly settled as it quit flowing at the high rate of speed of moments before.

Higgins was just grateful she'd finally come to a stop. Everything ached, and she was desperate for a breath of fresh air.

And that was when she realised she couldn't actually move.

When she tried to dig herself out, she found she couldn't budge her hands or arms. An attempt to kick her feet revealed the same, and she winced as she felt fire flare in her right thigh. The only comforting fact at the moment was the existence of a small pocket of air around her face; at least she didn't have to worry about suffocating immediately.

However, the fact remained that she was trapped—and she also had no idea where Rick was.

She couldn't even call out to him to make sure he was okay, not with how the darkness had closed so completely and heavily around her. Panic shot through her as she thought of how he might also be trapped—and perhaps without the lifesaving oxygen she'd somehow miraculously ended up with. Despite her struggles to free herself, her arms were wedged securely underneath her, and the mud was _heavy. _She couldn't get the leverage she needed to dig herself out, leaving her with no choice but to hope Rick was okay and that he would be able to find her before she ran out of air.

* * *

"Higgins!"

Rick stumbled as his boot caught on a root hidden in the mud, but he caught himself before hitting the ground. He winced and clenched his hand tighter around his side. There would be time to check himself over later; for now, the fact that he was on his feet and not trapped in the mud was enough.

He looked around frantically. Everything had been one big blur when the ground had dropped away under his feet, and he hadn't seen or heard from Jules after her startled scream amidst the roar of the mudslide. She'd been right behind him, though, and he could only assume she'd been caught up as well. His stomach clenched at the thought. If anything had happened to her…

"Juliet!" he yelled again. He was breathing heavily in exertion as he scrambled up another small rise and stopped to survey the area around him.

There was no telling where she'd been taken if she'd been swept away, and he felt his heart clenching as he looked for any sign to tell him where she might be.

A moment later, something blue in the midst of the scenery caught his attention, and he had to look twice to make sure he wasn't just imagining it. But no, there it was; it was definitely blue plaid fabric, half-buried under debris.

Rick rushed over, nearly falling twice as he scrambled toward it. There was a broken bush lying on top of where he could now see part of a back and shoulder sticking out of the mud.

Ignoring the pain that flared up his side, Rick reached for the branches and pushed them away, then sank his hands into the muck and started digging frantically. Jules was lying facedown, mostly buried, and the only thing he could think was he needed to get air to her as soon as possible.

Rick clenched his jaw and dug faster, frustrated at the way the soft, liquidy mud flowed into the space he'd emptied almost as soon as he dug out a handful. Finally, though, he had dug far enough down that he was able to grab onto her shoulder and turn her over.

The mud made a sickening slurping sound as he pulled her free, and Rick flipped her onto her back and tried to clear the mud from around her nose and mouth. "Hey, Higgy, come on. Open your eyes for me," he coaxed as he brushed away the hair that was plastered to her face

When she didn't respond right away, Rick felt for a pulse, and he let out a relieved breath as her heartbeat echoed under his fingertips. At least there was that.

"Juliet. Higgins? Can you hear me?" he called again, putting a hand on her cheek. "Jules!"

She stirred then, coughing and gasping for breath, then groaning as her eyes flickered open. He smiled down at her as her searching gaze landed on his face.

"Rick?"

"Hey, yeah, it's me. Are you okay?"

Nodding, Juliet took a breath, then moved to push herself up to a sitting position. Rick put a hand under her back and helped her sit up, swallowing against the flare of fire in his chest.

"I… yeah, I'm okay," she said slowly. She shifted her feet as if checking if everything was still in working order, and Rick noticed immediately when the pain crossed her face.

"What is it?" He was immediately checking for signs of an injury, although he couldn't see anything obvious.

Wincing, she bit her lip. "It's my leg, but… I think it'll be okay. I must have twisted it somehow."

Rick thought of how the mudslide had toppled him head over heels again and again, and he nodded. "That was some pretty intense stuff just now. Can you walk?"

"I think so," she replied. "Here, help me up."

As he got to his feet, Rick couldn't help the groan at the effort, which pulled Juliet's attention to him.

"Rick?" she asked worriedly.

He waved off the question. "I'm fine. Just sore. Here, come on." Steadying his balance, he held out a hand.

Her brow wrinkled as she studied him, but then she grasped his hand and tugged for support as she stood.

Rick pulled as well, although the effort left him strangely winded and out of breath. Juliet didn't seem to notice as she hesitantly put weight on her right leg. She took a tentative step, which resulted in a small cry of pain as she stumbled.

"Hey!" Rick was at her side in an instant, grabbing for her arm. "Careful!"

Her face was pale, but she just shook her head. "It's fine. I just… need a minute."

"You need more than that." With a sigh, Rick looked upward to study the sky. "Any chance the other guys are gonna come back this way soon?"

She put her hands on her hips and glanced up as well. "Probably not for a bit. They're looking around on the other side of the mountain where the terrain isn't as good; I'm sure they just expect us to call if we find anything first."

At that, Rick reached into his pocket. With everything that had happened, he hadn't even thought about calling for help, but now would be a great time to do so. Unfortunately, when he pulled his phone from his jacket—and boy, was he grateful for zipper pockets right about then—he growled in frustration.

At his companion's questioning look, Rick turned the device around to show her the cracked screen. "It must have gotten broken in the mudslide. I can't get it to turn on."

"And I left mine in the car," she replied with a glum look. "Well, I guess we're walking."

Rick raised an eyebrow. "Can you make it?"

"Not a problem," she replied firmly, although she sounded like she was trying to convince herself as much as him.

He wasn't sure she was being completely honest, judging from her tone and the look on her face, but Rick also wasn't sure how far he should push. Something to his left caught his eye, and he moved over to pick up the thick limb that was lying next to a pile of other debris. Snapping off the leafy end, he held it out to her. "Here, at least use this."

"Thanks," she said with a smile as she accepted the makeshift walking stick.

The fact that she didn't protest wasn't lost on Rick, but he didn't say anything. He just nodded and turned to glance around. "So… should we go?"

Juliet nodded and took a slow step, leaning on the branch for support as she limped a few steps forward.

Although they'd been carried a distance down the mountain and the landscape had changed from the mudslide—meaning Rick wasn't positive exactly where they were—at least all they had to do was get to the bottom of the slope. Which meant they'd be fine if they just kept going downhill.

He frowned as he realized it was starting to get dark. They hadn't been out here for _that _long, though. How could it already be nightfall…?

And then he felt his knees starting to grow weak, and the pain seemed to hit him all at once.

* * *

Higgins frowned as she took in the way her friend was swaying on his feet. Something was very wrong, but she had no idea what. "Rick?" she asked. "Are you okay?"

He turned toward her, then stopped.

She saw when the blood suddenly drained from his face, and she barely had time to leap forward and grab his shoulders before he slumped to the ground.

The sudden dead weight nearly dropped her, but she braced herself and managed to catch herself about halfway down, ignoring the pain that shot up her right leg like someone had stabbed her with a hot iron. Almost unbelievably, she somehow managed to lower Rick the rest of the way to the ground. It wasn't pretty, and it was much too fast, but at least he didn't hit his head. She could feel even more mud soaking through her pants as she cradled Rick's head in her lap, but she was solely focused on his much-too-pale countenance.

The man's eyes were closed, his breath shallow. Juliet searched for any flicker of movement, but there was nothing.

"Rick?" she called his name, patting his cheek in an attempt to stir him. "Come on, Rick!"

Dropping her hand down to his neck, she drew in a sigh when she could feel his heartbeat. At least he was still with her, but she still couldn't rouse him, and that worried her.

She quickly checked him over as thoroughly as she could given their current circumstances. Something had caused his sudden collapse, and she needed to figure out what. She could only hope it wasn't too dire. It would take time for rescuers to find and then reach them on the side of the mountain, and she couldn't conceivably drag his limp form all the way back home to find help—and there was no way she was leaving him alone.

Then she noticed something hitching in his breathing, and she tugged up the hem of his t-shirt. They'd both gotten tossed around something fierce in that mudslide, and Juliet had a sinking feeling that was to blame. It was highly likely Rick wasn't as fine as he'd claimed he was.

Sure enough, when the bruising met her eyes, she knew that was exactly what had happened.

"Rick, you idiot," she said softly, shaking her head.

"Hey now," came the weak voice at her elbow.

She jumped slightly as she turned back to him. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, biting her lip.

He cracked a small grin. "Well, you were kinda busy."

"Rick." Higgins let out a breath and shook her head again. "You should've said something." She turned back to examining him. "You'd better tell me if something else is wrong. Is it just your side?"

He made a face and shrugged his shoulder slightly. "I… I dunno."

Higgins shifted to pull herself out from underneath him and gently eased his head down to rest on the ground. She then moved so she could more fully check out the injury to his torso.

"Hey," he grumbled. "I'm fi—_Ahh!"_

"Sorry! I'm sorry!" she apologised quickly, pulling her hands back. She studied his pale face, and then shook her head and turned her attention back to his bruises "You really did a number on yourself, hm?"

"You should see the other guy."

Chuckling despite herself, she gently moved her hands further down, moving as softly as she could as she prodded and felt for any broken bones or other injuries he might be trying to brush under the rug. Other than what seemed to be some tender areas, he seemed to be okay besides what were definitely several broken ribs.

Which brought her back to her concern from earlier. She had no idea how she was going to get Rick to help. Higgins chewed on her lower lip as she considered their predicament—but then the last sound she had expected to hear—but the most welcome one in that moment—reached her ears. A helicopter. The _whirr_ of the blades filled her with relief, and she looked back at Rick with a smile.

He grinned back. "You should prolly go wave 'em down," he said quietly, half-lifting a hand to wave toward the sky. "I don't wanna be stuck on this mountain all night."

"I'll be right back," she replied with a shake of her head, scrambling to her feet.

She limped quickly in the direction of a clearing that lay just a few yards away, her focus fixed on the sky. When the brightly-painted chopper banked her way, she saw Magnum leaning out of his door, shading his eyes as he looked down toward her.

Higgins waved frantically, and she was rewarded as he waved back at her, then T.C. started to bring the bird down lower. She could now see Magnum gesturing up the mountain, and she realised the clearing where she was currently standing was too small to allow the bird to land. There must be a spot higher up that would be better.

And, sure enough, in less than five minutes, Magnum and T.C. were rushing down the muddy trail to meet her. Higgins was hurrying up to meet the men, planning to guide them to where she'd left Rick, but it was all she could to keep her injured leg from buckling under her as Magnum grabbed her elbow and demanded to know if she was okay.

She just shook her head and gestured back over her shoulder. "Rick needs help," she said quickly, her words tumbling over themselves. "He busted some ribs; I can't tell if they did any damage to his lungs."

They nodded, their eyes widening slightly in concern at the news, and Higgins turned to lead them back toward their injured friend—but she only made it a couple of steps before her leg finally decided to give out on her.

She tried to muffle the cry of pain as she collapsed forward, but she knew she wasn't successful.

Magnum caught her as she fell. "Yeah, you're not okay," he said firmly, and she didn't have time to object before he'd swept her up and turned back toward the helicopter.

She would've complained, except her leg literally felt like it was on fire now, and she just couldn't summon the energy to say a word.

He set her down on the floor just inside the back door and then turned his attention to her leg.

"Magnum, I'm fine," she protested. "Go get Rick."

He gave her a dubious look, then shook his head. "Stay put," he ordered, then he and T.C. turned and sprinted off down the trail.

Higgins took a deep breath, trying to still her breathing, and then slowly pulled herself into the backseat. She peered anxiously through the trees for any sight of the others until, finally, Magnum and T.C. reappeared. They were carefully supporting Rick between them, and Higgins felt her stomach clench in worry at how limp the injured man was.

Both Magnum and T.C. looked serious, their jaws clenched as they rushed for the helicopter. Magnum jumped up into the back, then reached down to pull Rick up as T.C. lifted.

Higgins quickly buckled her seatbelt and then reached out to cradle Rick's head as Magnum helped shift him to lie on the seat. Her stomach flip-flopped as she noticed the sheen of sweat on Rick's forehead and how pale he was now—even more so than when she'd left him on the trail. His eyes were closed again, and Higgins forced herself to breathe as she took it all in.

"Here!" Magnum called over the sound of the rotors firing up as he pulled the middle seatbelt over to snap it in around Rick. "You good?"

Not feeling up to yelling back, Higgins just nodded.

Then Magnum jumped out of the back of the chopper and rushed to the front passenger seat. T.C. lifted off a second later, and they were off.

"Hold on, Rick," Higgins leaned down to whisper. "You can't give up now, not after saving me. You have to fight." If she'd realised the men up front could hear her through her headset's mic, she didn't pay them any attention as she continued to murmur in the unconscious man's ear.

In the front seats, Magnum and T.C. exchanged a look as the helicopter banked right toward the hospital landing pad. Neither said a word, but they didn't have to. Somehow, even through their worry, they knew their friends would be okay. Rick would be fine—if only because he knew Higgins would kill him if he died on her.

* * *

_Fin._

_A/N II: __This story started with a vivid mental image that popped into my head of Rick and Higgy walking through the jungle and him just collapsing on her and just kind of went from there. And then I realized it totally fit the prompt for today, so here we are. 0:)_


End file.
